There, I said it.
It took me a while to feel comfortable saying it, and understandably so. The word feminist evokes the negative stereotype of being an angry, whiny, loud, obnoxious, opinionated, man-hater. On top of that, women are conditioned by a patriarchal society to be submissive people-pleasers who prioritize others’ comfort over their own. But if you look at history you’ll see the correlation between women’s advancements toward equality and the oppressive propaganda aimed at distracting us. The moments when women made the greatest political gains align with pressure to adhere to standards of beauty that have become increasingly thinner throughout the years. To quote Naomi Wolf, author of The Beauty Myth, “A culture fixated on female thinness is not an obsession about female beauty, but an obsession about female obedience. Dieting is the most potent political sedative in women’s history; a quietly mad population is a tractable one.”
| Feminist Movement | Wave | Diet Culture |
| Women advocated political equality, education, right to property, organizational leadership, and marital freedoms. | First Wave (Mid 19th-Early 20th Century) | The Gibson Girl became the feminine ideal by which all women were to measure themselves – big hair and small waists. Magazines advertised beauty and weight-loss products, diet pills made with arsenic, tapeworms, laxatives, scales, and soap that promised to wash fat away. Clothing became mass-produced which meant women had to ‘fit’ their clothes as they were no longer tailor-made for diverse body shapes and sizes. The image of the flapper exemplified youth. Women no longer needed to achieve an hourglass figure by wearing a restrictive corest, but to eliminate her curves completely on a diet of celery and cigarettes. |
| Women focused on reducing inequalities in sex, family, the workplace, and reproductive rights. | Second Wave (1960s-1980s) | A new standard of beauty pressured women to be as skinny as sixteen-year-old waiflike supermodel Twiggy. The number of diet-related articles in magazines rose 70 percent from 1968 to 1972. Jenny Craig opened for business the same year Karen Carpenter died of anorexia. A new obsession with low-fat, low-calorie foods and aerobics with Jane Fonda. |
| Women focused on embracing individualism and diversity. They campaigned for greater influence in politics and media. In reaction to political activism, feminists also had to maintain focus on women’s reproductive rights, such as the right to abortion. | Third Wave (1990s-2000s) | Kate Moss gave us the emaciated look of ‘heroin chic’ and the motto, ‘Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels’ to live by. Later, Victoria’s Secret declared their Angels as having ‘The Perfect Body’. |
| Initiated by the #metoo movement, the fourth wave of feminism has focused on combating sexual harassment, assault, and misogyny. | Fourth Wave (2012-today) | The Kardashian look has inspired products like shapewear, appetite suppressant lollipops, and detox (laxative) teas. Cosmetic surgeons offer a ‘Kylie Jenner package’ for contoured cheeks, jawlines sculpting, and lip fillers. There has been a nearly 40 percent surge in the number of noninvasive procedures done on 20- to 29-year-olds since the introduction of beauty editing filters on social media apps. |
Researchers have found that women who are preoccupied with their body struggle with their self-esteem and sense of effectiveness. Dieting is proven to cause women to be passive, anxious, and emotional. If women can’t achieve high self-esteem, a sense of effectiveness, activity, courage, and clarity of mind, how can they ever liberate themselves?